The Princess and the Demon Child
by seasaltmemories
Summary: Collection of works for Jukou week
1. CostumeCosplay

**Note: This cover was created by artist, fiveonthe, from deviantart**

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><p>She was stunning, teal dress opposite fiery red hair. A matching butterfly mask covered her eyes, highlighting her ruby red lips. It surprised Judal how a beauty like that wasn't swarming with attention. She stood off to the side, twirling a glass of wine, in the way only the elite knew how.<p>

"Mind if I join you?" He sauntered over to her, wearing a cocky, almost feral grin

"Sure," She shrugged before taking another sip.

"Good, because I wasn't gonna leave otherwise," She laughed, hollow and empty.

"Sounds about right, most people don't listen to me anyway." They stood in silence for a while, drinking and watching the picture perfect couples danced before them.

"What's even the point of these stupid masquerades?" Judal sighed while playing with his own mask.

"I suppose it's supposed to add a certain mystic." The butterfly lady replied. "You could be dancing with the prince of an exotic land, or the daughter of your arch nemesis. Though I suppose…" She trailed off, staring wistfully. "It's more to hide our secrets."

"As if nobles don't hide enough as it is,"

"But everyone hides something, the people who claim otherwise hide the most."

"So where does that leave you?" He asked, intrigued by this woman muttering nonsense.

"I'm no one," She smiled but it's insincerity was plain as day. "No one important, all I have are insignificant lies."

The cheerful music stopped, and the lights slowly dimmed. A sad, nostalgic tune began, crying of lost souls and lost hearts.

"Dance with me?" He stretched out his hand towards the butterfly lady. She hesitated, but then sat her glass down and took his hand in her.

"Why not?" She laughed, and they danced out into the crowd. Though both skilled, their styles were distinctly different. His forceful and demanding, her's shy but strong. Eventually they settled on a combination of the two, lost but powerful.

"Why did you choose such a hideous mask?" The question's awkward and innocent but it strikes a chord with Judal.

"I remember meeting a funny old man, carting around strange masks. In his land there was a belief masks were really our true identities. For a coin or two, he'd make a show out of picking one out for you, giving sweet young ladies harpies instead of the angels they longed for."

"And we're you surprised when he gave you a face befitting of a demon?" Judal was transported back to those days. He knew he was a monster, the man didn't need to tell him. Judal wondered if he realized this once he had pierced his knife through the old man's heart, stealing his little wealth as the blood tainted Judal's hands.

"No," He curtly shakes his head. "It wasn't surprising at all." For a beat they danced, one, two, three, twirl, and again.

"I disagree with that man." The butterfly lady sighed as the tempo picked up. "I'm anything but a butterfly, those are free, beautiful things, and I'm anything but free." Judal tried studying her expression, confused by her ramblings.

"I know what your thinking." She interrupted his train of thought. "Poor little rich girl, and you're right. How is marrying a man you don't love, or being a pawn in someone's game so bad compared to starving in the streets?" For once, Judal was thankful for his mask, hiding the memories of those exact thoughts he believed long ago.

"Still," She paused as he dipped her down, before bringing her closer to him than earlier. "Blue blood bleeds just as red does. And while our ivory skin remains untarnished by scars, our minds don't,"

He tried to think of something deep or clever to respond with, but just like that, the haunting piece was replaced by one more suited for this celebration.

"Let's go," He pointed to a deserted balcony nearby. The butterfly lady complied and they entered the chilly night's embrace.

"So what do you see when you look at me?" She gazed up at the starry sky. "If you say masks are our true selves, but I say masks lie, what does that leave me as?"

"A lovely maiden I'd ravish if the situation was otherwise." Judal laughed at his crude statement.

"I'm not some servant girl you can harass!" She pouted. "Or maybe I am," Her tone did a 180. "That's the point of a masquerade, we agreed on that."

"Well I also said they were stupid, so why don't we get over this charade, and break a few rules?"

The butterfly lady laughed again, still empty and hollow. "Fine, but as long as I also get to see the real demon face of your's. With that, she took off the butterfly mask, revealing two pink, broken eyes. In them, Judal recognized no one of importance, just a sad, lonely girl.

"Now your turn." She moved to take his off, and gasped once he saw his face. "I see now how you could be seen as a monster with those red eyes," She commented, as she laid his mask next to her's.

"Still, your an awfully handsome demon."

"The better to lure you with and tempt you my pretty." He replied as she moved to cup his cheek.

"I'd like to kiss you if the situation was otherwise." Her words were clumsy and inexperienced.

"Why not?" Judal wiped his bangs out of his face. "We've broken a few rules already."


	2. Peaches

To be honest, Judal hated peaches. They were far too sweet for his taste and he always accidentally swallowed the pit.

For someone who hated them, he ate an awful lot of them. He supposed it was mainly due to the fact there was a peach tree next to Kougykou's chambers, it always pissed her off seeing him eating one.

As time passed, she started to not notice him stealing the peaches. Well that was no good, he had spent years tolerating that crap and he wasn't gonna stop just because of her. So peaches became his favorite sort of ammo. Kougykou never saw it coming when he lobbed one at her head. She was so angry, and Judal laughed so hard his stomach hurt.

"It sure is peaceful tonight isn't it?" Kougykou remarked. Judal was pulled out of the past, back to the present. It was late, and they sat together under the very tree he frequented.

"You know I hate peaches," Judal didn't know where that came from, but the quietude of the night casted a strange spell over everything.

"Then why in the world would you eat them?" She yawned before rubbing her red-rimmed eyes.

"It always made you mad, hag."

"That's so stupid…" It sounded like she wanted to say more, but Kougykou nodded off and soon he found her resting her head against his shoulder.

Judal sighed before running a hand through her hair. He hated how she made him feel, how she had full control of him without knowing. Judal tried avoiding her most of the time, but he just couldn't stay away from her. She made him almost want to kill her with the way he couldn't control himself now, but mostly he wanted to just hold her, which was terrifying in a way he had never known.

Gently he pressed his lips to her forehead, afraid to do more.

"Guess I can't resist them," He said to no one in particular


	3. Red

Red. The color meant so much to Judal. Red like the ruby on his wand, powerful and deadly. Red like the blood he shed during a battle, warm and intoxicating. Red like the hair of a certain princess, sweet and oh-so tempting.

Yes Judal had a strange fascination with the whore's daughter. She was broken, much like him. Fierce in battle, timid in conversation, a walking contradiction. He wondered if he could have her, play with this interesting toy. He teased her, mocked her, and desired most of all to make her his own.

For Kougykou was so fragile, but so strong. Her beauty bloomed while breaking, and seeing her like that, Judal knew he couldn't quit til she was his.

He wanted to press his body against her's, make her draw red, angry marks in his back, bite her lip as punishment and cause her to bleed deep red blood. He would hide this treasure from everyone else, and together they'd watch the rest of the world go up in flames.

For she deserved more than the mere title of general. She deserved a seat at the throne, Empress of his broken empire, perfect for their broken selves. They'd paint the world red and nobody could ever control them again. He'd deliver the heads of all that dare hurt her, and she'd smile before kissing him and easing his pain.

But first he needed to wait. For Kougykou was stubborn and loyal. She wouldn't defy the Kou Empire for the demon child. But he'd wait. He'd wait for the day he would overthrow Al Thamen. And then he'd win her over. She'll be drawn to him, like a moth to a flame. And finally she'd love him, and everything would be right in his twisted world.


	4. Teasing

"It's fucking cold outside outside,"

"Grow up," Kougykou replied as she sipped her hot chocolate. She turned to see Judal shedding his various layers of clothing at the front door. "Put those away! I don't want you leaving a puddle of water on the carpet." But he ignored her, choosing to join her on the couch and steal her precious covers.

Kougykou hissed as the cool air made contact with her bare skin. She glared at Judal, but he just yawned before closing his eyes.

"Judal-"

"I'm tired," He whined. "You've been sitting inside all day in your pj's, while I've been slaving away outside."

"You're so infuriating,"

"And you're so old," Kougykou groaned, then sighed and got up to put away his coat and such. "Childish, selfish, baby," She muttered under her breath. But instead of rushing back to the warmth of the couch, she took a pit stop at the kitchen.

A few minutes later, she sat down a second hot chocolate on the coffee table.

"Oh," Judal moved to pick up the drink, but in that moment, Kougykou recaptured the covers. "Ha!" she cheered.

"Bitch,"

"Asshole,"

"Both are true." Instead of continuing this war over the covers, Judal conceded and instead intertwined his legs with Kougykou's for warmth. They sat like that for a while, drinking their hot chocolate.

"That wasn't half bad," Judal broke the silence once his mug was drained.

"Thank you!" She beamed, knowing he actually loved it.

"But you need to work more on your make-up, it's a mess." With that she aimed a well-placed kick.


	5. AU

Judal yawned as he gazed around the story with a bored expression. The flower shop was always empty around this time, which suited him just fine, he hated customers, but time seemed to almost stop whenever it was his shift. Carefully he calculated how many five minute periods he had to get through. 50 minutes left, alright, just have to wait 5 minutes 10 times.

Suddenly the bell rang and Judal looked up to see a cute redhead entering the shop. "Welcome to the Happy Little Shop of Wonders," He cringed at the sickeningly sweet name. "What do ya want?" He yawned again, not even trying to feign interest.

"Hi, sorry to interrupt you, I was wondering if you sell corsages?" The girl politely asked.

"Look at the sign,"

"Ah sorry," She apologized before following where his finger pointed. She studied the writing carefully, scrunching her nose up in concentration. Suddenly, her eyes lit up and she dashed away, searching for whatever she wanted.

Judal went back to daydreaming, wondering why she seemed so familiar. He had never seen a hairstyle like that before, but something about her made him nostalgic. He was about to ignore the nagging concern in his head, but suddenly the customer came back up to the front.

"Excuse me, sir. Could you help me with something for a sec?" He was ready to reply with something snarky, but for once decided to hold his tongue instead.

"Yeah," He turned to see her holding several corsages in her hand.

"I'm trying to figure about which one goes best with my hair color, since a dress hasn't been bought yet. Could you give your opinion?" Judal could tell she felt embarrassed having to ask an employee.

"Let's see," He clicked his tongue before tightening his braid in deep thought. "The red one's shit, too much red, it'll hurt your head. Blue offers a good contrast, but purple's more regal and sophisticated. Less obnoxious than that blue one and-" He cut himself off when he realized he was rambling. Damn, he didn't like people knowing about his eye for colors. It was way too girly.

However she didn't seem to mind his rambling at all. "Thank you so much! You were a great help!" Before he can reply, the customer had rushed back out the shop.

"Hey, lady! You forgot your flowers-" He shouted out. Instead of listening though, she left, only to enter with a blond a few seconds later.

"Promise me we won't take long?" The boy he presumed to be her boyfriend groaned.

"There was a nice employee who helped me pick it out, so we're all set." The girl led him up to the counter.

"He suggested you buy this one," She pointed to purple flower laying in front of them.

"Alright," The boy pulled out a wallet and gave the appropriate amount of money to Judal. They went through the rudimentary steps and soon the blond had his purchase in a plastic bag.

"Thanks, I'm sure Mor will love this," He said.

"I'm sure she will!" The girl beamed.

"Wait?" A look of confusion spread across Judal's face. "You two aren't…"

"Oh no!" The girl laughed. "He's gonna ask out his girl friend to prom, Morgiana not me, and he wanted it to be a surprise. She's a redhead too, so that's why I asked for your opinion-" She glanced down at his nametag "Judal!? Oh my gosh, Judal! Do you remember me?"

He gave her a once over, but no memories came to him. "Nope,"

"I'm Ren Kougykou!" She smiled. "From elementary school!" Suddenly the memories came back like a tidal wave. He remembered her, they had been friends since birth but he moved to a different middle school than her. Then another fact surfaced that made him nauseous. He had had the biggest fucking crush on her, and being an asshole even back then, he had logically teased her mercilessly.

"Fuck," He muttered under his breath. Looking at her now, he wasn't sure he had gotten over those feelings.

"We really need to catch up, here-" Kougykou pulled out a slip of paper and began to jot down some numbers. "Call me later so we can plan a time," With a grunt, he took the slip.

"We gotta go now, but thank you so much 'Judy'!" With that the duo exited discussing frantically about prom.

Judal sat there in silence, trying to process what had just happened. Of all the people he expected to see again… He studied the slip again, and a grin broke across his face. This would be interesting, very interesting.


	6. Rukh

Judal had seen many a men broken. From the death of a loved one, from hatred, from despair, he had lost count of how many times he's seen someone spiral out of control and self-destruct.

But strangely, she had never been tempted by the black rukh. Kougykou had every reason to curse fate, for the whore blood in her veins or her aching loneliness, but her rukh had never darkened.

"How do you do it?" He doesn't know where the question comes from, but now it's too late.

"What do you mean?" She cocks her head to the side, so innocently.

"You're hated, mocked, and looked down by almost everyone, but you've never cursed destiny."

"Oh," Kougykou fiddles with her hairpin, nervousness evident. "I guess I never thought of it like that. I mean I'm only the Eighth Princess, my position makes sense."

What a lie. She deserved a throne. For none could compete with her fierceness in battle. If she ever gave up, no one would be able to touch her, not even him. Just the imagine of the fallen princess made his blood rush. Someone who understood his madness, someone he could destroy the world with.

But suddenly a much more frightening image replaced his fantasy.

"What is it?" Kougykou gave him a look of concern.

"Nothing," He shook his head. All who gave in the black rukh, shared the same fate, how ironic. He was a walking time bomb, he could live with that, it's all he's known. But the thought of her self-destructing, terrified him.


	7. Soldier

How strange, many thought. The Eighth Kou Princess, the very fragile and feminine ghost of a girl, longed to fight. Hakuei was brave and strong, it was natural for the First Princess to lead. But Kougykou was the exact opposite: unimportant and weak, not fit for a soldier.

But that made her work even harder, made her practice from sun-up to sun-down, painting her pale skin, black and blue and spilling her royal blood. "I'll show them," she'd whisper as Ka Koubon bandaged her broken body. "I'm a fighter too."

Despite her zest for training, she knew it was not enough to face the royal guards. She needed someone ruthless and bloodthirsty to spar with. That's why she came to him.

"What did you say?" Judal groaned as he lounged against the tree.

"I said fight me," She explained, fire burning in her pink eyes. "I need to face a real opponent, not someone who will go easy on me."

"Ugh, you're not worth the trouble to fight, stop interrupting my nap." Kougykou growled in fury.

"You may be our Magi, but I am Ren Kougykou, Eighth Princess of the Kou Empire! You will fight me, and that's an order!" She raised her sword for battle. A minute passed and Judal didn't move an inch. He sat with closed eyes and a serious expression.

"Judal?" Kougykou gave him a look of concern, fury fading, but that's when he made his attack. A blast of magic sent her flying and, knocked her off her feet.

"Rule number 1," He sauntered over to her with a cocky grin. "Never let your guard down." He aimed another blast at her head, but Kougykou rolled out of the way and got back to her feet.

"Promise you won't go easy one me," She asked between gasps for air.

"You'll regret making me promise that." And so they danced, both skilled and determined. Judal had an advantage with his magic, but Kougykou was nimble and quick. Deftly dodging his attacks.

"You're not fighting hard enough!"

"More! more!"

He taunted her, pushing her farther and farther, past her limits. All Kougykou could do was smile. She smiled like a queen, fierce and dangerous. They clashed and fought til Kougykou ended up on Judal with a sword pressed against his neck. They were so close her hot, ragged breath tickled his bangs every time she breathed.

"See that! See that! I can fight, too!" She laughed, high off the adrenaline. She pressed her sword deeper, drawing blood from him.

Judal cursed and Kougykou let out another sick laugh. She did it, now they can't gossip like that behind her back.

"You're one fierce bitch Kougykou, stronger than I expected, maybe…."

"What?" That hesitation was enough for him. He flipped her over, and pinned her to the ground.

"I told you before," His breath ghosted over her cheek. "Never. Let. Your. Guard. Down." With that, he got up and put on an apathetic mask.

"Wait!" Kougykou cried out as he flew off. "When can we spar again?" But it was too late, he was gone. In the sky, Judal grinned as he rubbed the spot where she had drew blood.

"You got claws, Kougykou. With time you'll make a deadly queen."

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><p><strong>A.N. A bit ooc, with Kougykou but I believe sometimes she has flashes of boldness, hence the whole "I'm Ren Kougykou" thing.<strong>


	8. Yesterdays

Sometimes in the quiet, rare moments of life, Kougykou remembers her time with him. The demon child that would tease and torment the whore's daughter, and then she'd cry and call him names, but the next day she'd play with him again .

She remembers days spent chasing each other around, over a silly insult or prank it didn't matter. They hurt at such a tender age cherished these moments, for they forget about the problems that haunted them. Eventually they'd both collapse in exhaustion and the hurt would come back tenfold, so he'd call her a hag, or she'd pull his braid, hoping to fight again. For fighting was better than the pain.

And despite their rowdiness, they got along sometimes. He'd let her play with his long black hair, running her fingers through it in awe of it's beauty. She'd spar with him, letting the adrenaline flow throughout her body. He'd always win due to his magic, but that didn't stop a her from getting a nick or two in.

But then life happened, the demon child became an oracle, the whore's daughter, a princess. He had always had a cruel streak, but now Judal seemed only interested in causing as much chaos as possible. No longer would they play and tease, he was too busy being great, she too busy breaking down.

For all her life Kougykou had felt alone. Except for Ka Koubun, it felt like she could fade away and no one would notice. Not Hakuei, Kouen, Kouha, nor anyone else in her family.

She held the Spirit of Sorrow and Isolation, forever alone, forever lost.

In those moments of despair, a faint memory would drift back. Of her timidly approaching the demon child, desperate for any form of affection.

"Do you want to be friends, Judal?" She had been so scared, so very scared.

"Pfft, why would I even talk to an ugly hag like you?" Those words lit a fire in her. Kougykou didn't know why, but the fear was replaced with anger.

"What did you call me?"

"A hag, you're so old, your face is just one bigass wrinkle,"

"How dare you call me that!" She yelled. She got ready to say more, but the fire died out, and the fear came back.

"I'm sorry I-"

"Is that all you got?"

"What?" Kougykou looked up with timid pink eyes.

"Oh I'm so scared, whatever shall I do," He gave her a mocking grin. "You're gonna have to do better than that, hag."

"I am not a hag!"

Despite his words, they had had a strange friendship of sorts. They were the only ones to truly care about the other with no ulterior motive. Oh how she wished to live those yesterdays again.


End file.
